Corporate Idealist

This video has been making the blog rounds recently. It’s eight minutes of artistry as Kseniya Simonova uses a light box and sand to detail Germany’s invasion of Ukraine. For her efforts, she won Ukraine’s Got Talent this year.

To me it’s amazing what she creates with sand. Sand. Small grains of sand are turned into beautiful artwork right before our eyes.

I don’t know how she got started. Maybe she was on some beach one day and started messing around. Maybe she took a sand art class. Regardless, there’s no doubt that she creates something masterful with something nearly insignificant.

This week at my new job, I was waiting on my dry erase board to be installed. I tend to have spur-of-the-moment bursts of inspiration. As such, I like to have a place to write them down and let the creativity flow. Before it arrived, I felt like I couldn’t do much of anything. “But what if I have a great idea?” I thought. “Where will I write it?”

And then I watched this video. I learned that in the hands of a true artist, the tools are secondary. It merely takes vision and will in order to manipulate the tools in order to create art, beauty, and impact.

Maybe it’s time we stop waiting for the “right” tools. Perhaps we don’t need the latest of any gadget in order to do meaningful work. Maybe what need is a passion, a will, and a commitment to creating something of beauty.

Passion and talent is what turns sand into art.

photo credit: Niffty..

Over at Forbes.com, there’s an article about how to have a successful office romance. via How To Have A Successful Office Romance – Forbes.com. It’s relevant because:

According to a 2009 survey by the job search Web site CareerBuilder.com, four out of 10 workers say they’ve dated a colleague at some point in their careers. Three in 10 say they married the person they dated at work.

Some of the wisdom this article imparts is:

Don’t date underlings.

“You might as well put a sign on your forehead that says, ‘Kick me here.’” McKenna acts mainly as a defense lawyer.

Negotiate in advance

If a supervisor and an underling just can’t resist each other, McKenna recommends that they sign what she calls a “cupid contract.” They should spell out in writing the fact that both are engaging in a consensual relationship. If the company has a sexual harassment policy, they should make it clear they understand the rules.

Know that the stakes are high

One more piece of advice: Consider how you would feel if you lost your job. Everyone who has experienced heartbreak knows that proximity to an ex can be unbearable. All too often, say experts, failed office romances result in one person leaving the job–willfully or not.

While this is a fairly comprehensive run-down of being in a relationship with someone at work, it overlooks some of the nuances around getting into and out of that relationship.

What about everything leading up to and following the office romance? How do you approach someone at work you find attractive? Anything flirtatious runs the risk of at least being viewed as sexual harassment, even if the approach is handled carefully and with respect. How do you manage it without crossing a line?

And then how and when do you decide to tell coworkers you’re dating a fellow coworker? Is it wise to keep it a secret? Is it even really possible?

And of course, how do you deal with the fallout of a breakup? Have you ever had to work alongside someone you used to date? How did it go?

Been there? Give us your wisdom in the comments.

photo credit: Sarah G…

Routine can be a helpful mechanism for getting repeating tasks done on a regular basis, but it can also trick you into blind cooperation with the past. Do all of your repeating tasks still matter? Are there others you’re doing only sporadically that could be scheduled for better reliability and efficiency? Should you be delegating some of those tasks, if you can?

Why not use a few moments this morning to review your to do list, your calendar, and your mental checklist of habits for anything that might need some freshening up. I just read through mine and noticed that I don’t have a time scheduled regularly to review our client list and projects and make sure we’re not overlooking anything we should be doing. I’m going to go schedule that now.

In other words, perhaps: don’t let the everyday craziness get in the way of a stable routine, but on the other hand, don’t let routine get in the way of your creativity.

Happy Monday!

photo credit: MikeSchinkel

So much attention is paid in the business world to starting things. We value entrepreneurs as celebrities. We praise people who are innovative and think up the next big idea.

But rarely do we congratulate someone on finishing something. We hardly ever pat someone on the back when they prudently decide it’s time to move on, that the business model no longer works or that they need to break up with a client.

Maybe it’s because usually, things end badly. Most of the time, when we end any relationship (business or personal), we’re not sure quite how to do it, so things go awry, people get angry, and we hastily halt everything in order to move on quickly.

It’s like all of our professional relationships can be summed up in Berger’s post-it note to Carrie.

Over the next few weeks, I’ll be transitioning out of the world of entrepreneurship, consulting and freelancing, at least on a full-time basis. I’ll be transitioning into a world of offices, 9-to-5 schedules, and corporate hierarchy. It’s a big transition in and of itself, but it’s also one that’s been full of small details that are equally important.

There are client projects that I must finish in a timely and efficient manner. There are duties that need to be described and handed over. There are roles and responsibilities that must be abdicated and then passed on. As excited as I am about what’s next, I’ve still got to make sure everything is still taken care of.

When I was graduating high school, a mentor told me to make sure I finished well. That advice has stayed with me, and every time I end something, those words ring true. No matter what we’re ending, we’ve got to do it well.

How do you end things? Do you rush through them in order to move on, or do you double-check to make sure everything is happening in a timely and professional manner?